The Las Cruces Vaqueros: A Pleasant Surprise In The Struggling CBL

Of all the Independent Leagues around, the Continental Baseball League has to be the least publicized.

With only four teams, there is very little documented about their teams, their games, or the development of their business.

However, when you look closely, there are numerous Major League connections in this four-year start-up.

The CBL trophy is named after Hall of Famer Ferguson Jenkins, Jay Johnstone, 20-year MLB veteran, is the Teams Relations Director, and 19 former players have signed with MLB organizations.

Unfortunately, the CBL is in the midst of a severe struggle as only two of the six teams from the 2009 season remain.

Expansion is always necessary for the “Indy’s” to survive which makes it all the more exciting to hear that Woodward Oklahoma and new Fuller Park is the newest proposed location.

With all the uncertainty in the air, the Las Cruces Vaqueros are becoming a legitimate stepping-stone to something bigger, a new beginning or one last shot for players trying to keep the dream alive.

Being a first year club, something is being done right in New Mexico; the Vaqueros are currently in second place in the four-team race, with a 24-12 record.

Even better is the fact that after less than forty games, players are already being noticed.

According to the Las Cruces Sun News, three Vaquereos are moving on the brighter pastures.

Lammar Guy and Hunter Haggerty went to the Coastal Bend Thunder of the United League, while Eric Stephans made the leap to the Washington Wild Things of the Frontier League.

Whether the league continues to grow and expand or the CBL falls by the wayside as numerous others have, we may not know.  All we can confirm is that very talented players and coaches are affiliated with this league, instilling credibility, while attracting more eyes to the product.

Devon Teeple is an author for the Business of Sports Network, which includes the Biz of Baseball, the Biz of  Football, the Biz of Basketball and the Biz of Hockey.   He is a former professional baseball player with the River City Rascals & Gateway Grizzlies. Devon is also available for hire or freelance opportunities.

Devon is a former student within Sports Management Worldwide’s Baseball General Manager Class. Devon is the founder of The GM’s Perspective and is a intern with The Football Outsiders and contributor with the Plymouth River Eels.

Currently, Devon is a Branch Manager at a financial institution in Southern Ontario Canada.  He can be reached at devon@thegmsperspective.com , thegmsperspective@yahoo.com or devon@businessofsportsnetwork.com